Byrne says Bohs have gelled as a team at last as Bray come calling

A return of one point and no goals from a run of six games left Bohemians supporters with very little to be cheerful not so long ago.

But a Gypsy revival has seen the club looking up, not down, the league table and in-form striker Kurtis Byrne says that Keith Long's side, with five wins from the last six in the league and FAI Cup, are playing with a smile on their faces again.

A miserable run in April/May tipped the Phibsboro club dangerously close to the bottom two but, ahead of tonight's game at home to Bray Wanderers, confidence is flowing again and a win at Dalymount Park tonight could - albeit briefly - bring Bohs into the top five.

A push for a European place appears to be optimistic as, even with a win this evening, Bohs would still be five points behind a fourth-placed Shamrock Rovers side who would have two games in hand, but for Byrne, Dalymount Park is a much happier place now.

"This run we are on is more like the real us, I think we have gelled as a team at last, and maybe our luck has changed," says Byrne, who scored the only goal of the game in last week's win away to Longford Town.

"We're unbeaten in six now and creeping up the table, we're trying not to look too far ahead but it's pleasing that we're putting in good performances.

"I think you can see the players have a smile on their faces again, we go into each game feeling confident.

"We have cut out a lot of the mistakes that we'd been making earlier in the season and we're scoring goals, which is pleasing," added Byrne, who had gone 10 games without a goal in the league but has now scored twice in the last four outings.

"We had a hard few weeks, our form dipped after the 4-0 defeat to Shamrock Rovers, but we stayed together as a group and we're starting to see the benefits now.

"We can try and break into the top four or five now and Europe is achievable for us, but we can't get too carried away, we'll deal with Bray tonight, which is always a tough game for us especially as Bray have made some good signings, and then look ahead," says Byrne, adding that fresh faces like new signings Ian Morris and Shane Supple have freshened things up.

"The new arrivals keep everyone on their toes, we've got two top-class players in Shane and Ian and maybe they can give us that little bit extra to push on."

Tonight's opponents, Bray, remain close to the danger zone and are only outside of the bottom two on goal difference but, with three clean sheets in their last three games, have the joint-best defensive record in the league, along with Cork City.